Ron Bailey (rugby league)

Ron Bailey

Personal information
Full name	Ronald Bailey
Born	3 March 1914 Mayfield, New South Wales, Australia
Died	21 June 1989 (aged 75) Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia
Playing information
Position	Centre
Club
Years	Team	Pld	T	G	FG	P
1937	Newtown Bluebags	8	3	0	0	9
1937–39	Huddersfield
1940–41	Waratah Mayfield
1941–46	Canterbury-Bankstown	81	30	0	0	90
	Total	89	33	0	0	99
Representative
Years	Team	Pld	T	G	FG	P
1936	Newcastle
1945–46	Country NSW
1945–46	New South Wales	5	2	0	0	6
1946	Australia	2	1	0	0	3
Coaching information
Club
Years	Team	Gms	W	D	L	W%
1941	Canterbury-Bankstown	14	9	0	5	64
Source: Yesterday's Hero

Ron Bailey (1914–1989) was an Australian rugby league footballer of the 1930s and 1940s. He was a New South Wales Country, New South Wales, and Australian representative whose club career was played with Waratah Mayfield, Newtown Bluebags, Huddersfield, and Canterbury-Bankstown in Sydney. He captained his country in one Test in 1946 and was the first Canterbury-Bankstown player to do so.

Club career

Bailey was graded with the Waratah Mayfield club at age 18, then represented for Country in 1935-36. In 1936 he came to the attention of Sydney talent scouts when he represented for Newcastle against a touring English side, downing the visitors 21-6.

Bailey came to Sydney for Newtown Bluebags in 1937 and playing at Centre alongside Frank Hyde helped Newtown to win the City Cup that year.

He accepted an offer to join Huddersfield in England in 1937 and played two seasons there at Loose forward/Lock.

Ron Bailey returned to Australia at the outbreak of World War II and after another season at Waratah Mayfield joined Canterbury-Bankstown as captain-coach in 1941 back at centre. Canterbury won a premiership under Bailey in 1941.

Representative career

After the war Bailey made his state and national representative debuts. He played five games for New South Wales against Queensland, and visiting English sides. He played two games for Australia against Great Britain in 1946, the second of those as captain.

With no international fixtures scheduled in 1947 Bailey had played his last Test in 1946. He played out the 1947-48 seasons as captain-coach with West Maitland before his retirement.

Sources

• Whiticker, Alan (2004) Captaining the Kangaroos, New Holland, Sydney

External links

• No More Bloody Bundles For Britain